Скачать или смотреть ⚖️ Supreme Court Withdraws Ban on Retrospective Environmental Clearances | 21 Nov 2025

Big Relief for Infrastructure Projects as SC Recalls Vanashakti Judgment ⚖️🏗️🌿

In a significant shift, the Supreme Court of India has reversed its 2025 Vanashakti ruling that had completely banned retrospective / ex post facto Environmental Clearances (ECs).
In a 2:1 majority judgment on 21 November 2025, the Court held that an absolute ban would harm public infrastructure, affect investments, and create widespread uncertainty — especially when delays are due to procedural lapses and not deliberate violations ⚠️📄🏗️

This ruling reopens debates on environmental governance, judicial intervention, and the balance between development and sustainability.

🔍 What Exactly Are Ex Post Facto (Retrospective) ECs?

📌 Approvals granted after a project has already begun construction or operations
📌 Allowed only in rare and exceptional cases
📌 Often misused to regularise illegal construction

Under EPA 1986 and EIA 1994/2006, prior approval is mandatory — but post-facto clearances have been allowed under limited circumstances by past judgments.

⚖️ Why the SC Recalled the Vanashakti Judgment

The Court gave several reasons:
✔️ Per Incuriam → Vanashakti ignored earlier rulings like Alembic (2020) & D. Swamy (2021)
✔️ Requires larger bench due to conflicting interpretations
✔️ Public interest → Strict bans may stall essential infrastructure
✔️ ECs may be delayed due to procedural gaps, not bad intent
✔️ Retrospective ECs must remain exceptional + penalty-based
✖️ Dissent: Justice Ujjal Bhuyan warned that post-facto ECs reward violators and weaken environmental rights under Article 21.

🏛️ Article 137 — Supreme Court’s Review Power

Under Article 137, the SC can review its own judgments to fix grave errors.
Additionally, the Curative Petition (Rupa Ashok Hurra, 2002) is used when even a review fails to correct injustice.

🌱 Understanding Environmental Clearances (ECs)

📌 Category A Projects → MoEF&CC
📌 Category B Projects → State SEIAAs

The EC process includes:
✔️ Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
✔️ Public Consultation
✔️ Expert Appraisal
✔️ Final Clearance within 120 days (valid for 5 years)

Retrospective approvals bypass these steps — hence the controversy.

🏚️ Challenges in India’s EC Framework

⚠️ Public hearings often symbolic
⚠️ Exemptions allow projects to skip EIA
⚠️ Weak local participation
⚠️ Delayed monitoring & enforcement

🌿 Path Forward: Balancing Development & Ecology

India must focus on:
🌳 Strict prior approvals
🛰️ Satellite-based monitoring
💻 Digital GIS-based violation tracking
🧾 Polluter Pays Principle
🌱 Ecosystem restoration
🌞 Renewable energy expansion (Solar Mission)
🌾 Strong Gram Sabha participation under FRA 2006

📘 UPSC GS Paper 3 — Very Important Points

• SC recalls Vanashakti ruling → Retrospective ECs not fully illegal
• Post-facto ECs allowed only in exceptional cases
• Article 137 → SC review power
• Curative petition → final remedy
• EIA 2006 = mandatory prior clearance
• Alembic (2020) & D. Swamy (2021) → allow limited post-facto approval
• EC challenges: token hearings, local exclusion, exemptions
• Development vs Environment = core policy challenge

Use these points in GS-3, GS-2, Essay, and Ethics answers!

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